The $300,000 Lock Cities Theatres Circuit house launched July 18, 1925 and was leased by Famous Players-Lasky for booking Paramount films there and Keith vaudeville acts were also there at the outset. Architected by Leon H. Lempert & Son with John Moon & Co. as contractor, the storage area had 42 sets for the live vaudeville shows. At opening, it had a $25,000 Wurlitzer Hope-Jones Organ with Bobby Demming at the keys and Joseph Pomeranz as the conductor.

1,100 of the seats were on the main floor with Wilton carpeting underneath the Haywood-Wafefield seating. 500 seats in the balcony and 125 loge seats made up the 1,725 seat theatre at its launch. A curtain at the 40'x25' proscenium had a mural painted by Lusk Studios of Rochester. George T. Cruzen was the opening manager.

Its nice to see that a community cares about its history.
Im from Olean NY and they tear everything down here :(
We once had a beautiful Palace Theatre (its now an Eckerd Drug Store and a parking lot)
When Im in the Buffalo area, Im going to make sure to come into Lockport. Great Job on the Palace!

Unfortunately, we don’t get to choose “history” Patsy! While none of us would ever consider the first duplex or triplex “historic theaters” – they indeed are part of the evolution of the history of motion picture exhibition. And it really irritates me to see that movies that I saw the FIRST TIME AROUND are now popping up on AMC or being remade! How can they be “movie classics”.. isn’t that reserved for OLD movies??!! If they are “old movies”… then what am I??

Nice to see a classic listed…Jailhouse Rock though I don’t put that one in the same category as a classic like any of the Hitchcock movies, Cary Grant movies or the MGM musicals and Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers movies.